The Asaduddin Owaisi-led AIMIM has thrown its hat into Bihar’s electoral ring, announcing 25 candidates on Sunday.
The party, which had vowed to contest "100 seats" after being ignored by the INDIA bloc, is aiming to expand beyond its lone seat in the state.
The list, shared on X, includes Akhtarul Iman, the party’s state president and only MLA in Bihar.
"We are happy to announce the list of AIMIM candidates for the upcoming Bihar elections. The candidates were finalised by AIMIM’s Bihar Unit, in consultation with the party's national leadership. Inshallah, we will be a voice of justice for Bihar's weakest and most neglected," the post said.
Iman has been renominated from Amour, where JD(U) has replaced 2020 runner-up Saba Zafar with Sabir Ali, a former Rajya Sabha MP expelled from the party 11 years ago. Most of AIMIM’s focus remains on the Seemanchal region, a flood-prone, Muslim-majority area in the state’s north-east.
But AIMIM is testing its reach beyond its stronghold. Manoj Kumar Das will contest from Sikandra in Gaya, a reserved seat where sitting MLA Prafull Kumar Manjhi of HAM seeks a second term.
In East Champaran’s Dhaka constituency, bordering Nepal, the party has fielded Rana Ranjeet Singh, brother of BJP MLA Rana Randheer Singh, who is aiming for a hat-trick from nearby Madhuban.
The BJP candidate from Dhaka is sitting MLA Pawan Kumar Jaiswal.
In the last assembly elections, AIMIM contested 19 seats and won five, though four of its MLAs later defected to RJD.
This time, the party had sought to join the INDIA bloc, writing to RJD president Lalu Prasad and his son Tejashwi Yadav, but received no response.
The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) will also contest Bihar independently, planning to review its alliance with Congress and RJD in Jharkhand post-election. JMM general secretary Supriyo Bhattacharya said the party will field candidates in six seats.
National Democratic Alliance (NDA) on October 16 announced its candidates for all 243 constituencies.
Bihar goes to polls on November 6 and 11 for 243 assembly seats, with counting scheduled for November 14.